West Ham slammed over ‘disgusting’ Callum Wilson reveal after Brentford loss
Callum Wilson was an unused substitute once again as West Ham fell to defeat against Brentford on Monday.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s first home game in charge of West Ham ended in a 2-0 loss to Brentford through goals from Igor Thiago and Mathias Jensen.
As many as 20,000 West Ham season ticket holders boycotted the Brentford game as a clear message was sent to David Sullivan.
It was a dreadful performance in front of a lacklustre crowd, with West Ham now among the favourites for relegation at this admittedly early stage of the season.
Wilson was kept in reserve despite West Ham needing a goal, with Callum Marshall – and four others – preferred ahead of him.
Possible reason behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s Callum Wilson snub revealed
Nuno clearly does not fancy James Ward-Prowse at West Ham, with the midfielder once again not part of the matchday squad against Brentford.
While Wilson was named in the 20-man group at the London Stadium, he had to watch the full 90 minutes from the substitutes’ bench.
This was made all the more bizarre given West Ham were chasing a goal, and the younger Marshall was instead preferred.
Speaking on talkSPORT straight after the game, Adrian Durham pointed out that Wilson was on a pay-as-you-play contract and that may well have influenced Nuno’s decision.
Reacting to that on Tuesday’s talkSPORT Drive show, Andy Goldstein said: “If that’s true, if they’re not picking a player because he costs money to play him, it’s disgusting. It’s terrible.”
Co-host Darren Bent was in agreement as he added: “Embarrassing.”
Wilson has been restricted to just one start in the Premier League this season, coming in the 2-1 home loss to Crystal Palace on 20 September.
Wilson in baffling West Ham situation
While details of Wilson’s contract were never made public, it was widely reported he was on an incentive-based deal.
That made sense on the face of it given his injury struggles in recent years. However, if West Ham are going to restrict Wilson to just one start across their first eight games, what is the point?
| Games (starts) | Minutes | Goals | xG | Touches in opp. box |
| 5 (1) | 171 | 1 | 1.09 | 13 |
Wilson seemed the ideal choice to bring on with an hour played against Brentford, yet Nuno decided against that.
If that was based on wanting to show faith in Marshall, fine. But West Ham were crying out for someone who has showed time and time again they are capable of finding the net.
If this is going to be the way it is, there is no point in Wilson even being among the substitutes. And if that is the case, a January exit now surely awaits.
Enjoyed this article? Stay connected with all the latest West Ham United news, updates, and behind-the-scenes content by following us on our new Instagram account – @westhamzone247